


The Dugout

by misceltayneous



Category: The Fosters (TV 2013)
Genre: Baseball, Gay, Jonnor - Freeform, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-25
Updated: 2016-01-25
Packaged: 2018-05-16 06:42:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5818087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misceltayneous/pseuds/misceltayneous
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Boyfriends, baseball, and bleachers. A oneshot recounting a summer day in the life of teenaged Jude and Connor. “Jude’s sunglasses can’t even hide how much he has been ogling his boyfriend on the field. It’s very clear that Connor loves having Jude at all of his baseball games almost as much as Jude loves watching them.” Futurefic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Dugout

Jude turns around to lock his car doors behind him. The gravel beneath his feet crunches in a familiar way as he starts walking towards the field. Everything about the freshly landscaped lawn has become a common sight in his life, as his boyfriend is the captain of his traveling baseball team. He squints his eyes behind his sunglasses, the sky refusing to offer even a single cloud for protection from the sun.

At least Jude doesn’t have to participate in an endless baseball tournament today, all he has to do is watch Connor play from the sidelines. _Which he doesn’t mind at all._

Jude makes his way to the reflective bleachers adjacent to the field. He lifts his hand to his forehead to tailor his vision to the people already seated on the bleachers. His eyes catch hold of Adam waving a hand at him, gesturing him over to the empty seat next to him.

He approaches the seat and finds himself next to Connor’s dad. Things between them are as normal as they were before his initial speculation of Jude being gay four years ago. Their relationship is even better, actually, considering Jude has been dating his son for so long. Adam being one of Connor’s biggest supporters, on and off the field.

“Connor wanted me to tell you to meet him by the dugout before the first game starts, which means you should probably head down there now.” Adam casually points down at the home team dugout. “I don’t think he noticed you walking up here.”

“Okay, thanks. I’ll be right back.” Jude provides Adam an appreciative smile and stands up off the scorching seat. He knows he shouldn’t get too used to not being seated, as he will be here for three games if Connor’s team continues to win.

He makes his way down the stairs, his fingertips barely grazing the handrail leading to the ground. Jude spots Connor sitting on the outermost part of the dugout bench, laughing with his teammates about God knows what.

Connor quickly notices Jude as he gets closer to the dugout. He stands to meet him. “Damn babe, how am I supposed to win today while you look so hot?” Connor remarks, following an exaggerated wolf whistle.

“I look hot because it’s 87 degrees out here, but keep telling yourself that _I’m_ the reason you always strike out.” Jude snidely sneers back, wrapping a hand around the nape of his boyfriend’s neck to bring him in for a kiss.

Connor ends the quick liplock, pretending to be offended by Jude’s comment. “How dare you say that!” He teases with a fake gasp. “My baseball playing skills are extremely refined, thank you.”

A roar of laughter comes from Connor’s teammates in the dugout now behind him. Justin, the team’s lead pitcher, scoffs. “Okay Stevens, whatever you say. All I know is I can strike you out in a second with my screwball.” Justin flexes a muscle and places a kiss onto his bicep.

“Well, let’s just be glad you’re not the one pitching to me, Richardson.” Connor replies, not even attempting to deny the fact that he can’t touch Justin’s pitches.

Connor walks over to his equipment bag near the dugout, kneeling down in front of it. He pulls a water bottle and small drink packet out, using his teeth to tear the plastic packet open. Upon emptying the orange powder into the water bottle, he twists the cap back on the bottle and proceeds to vigorously shake it in front of his body.

Jude immediately reacts, practically jumping out of his skin to move Connor’s jerking hand to anywhere but in front of his crotch. He can only imagine what anyone watching envisioned Connor doing, and he knows Connor was very aware of what he was making people think.

“What?” Connor bites his lip to hold in laughter. “You don’t like what you see?” Jude feels his face turn bright red as his boyfriend’s lip upturns slightly. “Oh, wait! _You_ want to do it for me?” He holds out the water bottle in front of Jude. “Be careful though, you wouldn’t want to make the water to spill out...or would you?”

“Connor!” Jude’s voice shrinks into a whisper, his eyes shooting harmless daggers at the taller boy. “Stop it!”

“Stop what? _I’m…_ ” Connor brings a hand to his chest, theatrically gesturing to himself. “...just making myself some flavored water.” He proceeds to marry the powder and water, adding a forceful shake in between words. “This. Is. Completely. Innocent.”

Another team member speaks up next, drawing the couple’s attention to him. “Connor,” Garrett stands up from the bench and dramatically saunters over to them, wrapping an arm around Connor’s neck. “That is not innocent...at _all_.”

Jude finally caves in, chuckling to alleviate the awkwardness of the situation. “Exactly! Thank you!”

“Ah, there we go.” Jude feels his boyfriend tap his nose with his index finger. “Someone’s finally appreciating my jokes.” Connor leans into Jude, planting a kiss onto Jude’s flushed cheeks.

A horde of players in earshot groan from the dugout, tearing Connor’s attention from Jude. “Holy shit guys, get a room.” Justin stipulates with a laugh.

“Yeah, honestly.” Zander turns around and rests an arm against the wooden slats that form the dugout. “I don’t need you guys rubbing in that you’re not single as hell like me.”

Connor turns back to face Jude, rolling his eyes. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with these guys.” Connor’s voice quietens drastically as he leans into Jude. “But I do know what I’m going to do with you.” He adds with a purposely outlandish wink.

“Oh my god, get out of here.” Jude smirks, using his dominant hand to lightly shove Connor in the direction of his teammates. “Go get ready to dazzle the crowd with your ‘refined baseball playing skills.’” He doesn’t hesitate to surround Connor's words in air quotations.

“Why don’t you love me?” Connor pouts, but turns on his foot back into the dugout. “I’ll be listening for your cheers, so don’t let me down!” Jude hears him call out, offering his boyfriend only a thumbs up since he’s already making his way back to the seat next to Adam.

When Jude gets back to where he and Adam were, he finds that Adam isn’t there anymore. He sees his drawstring bag so he knows Connor’s father is probably getting concessions, as it is an extremely sweltering day. Jude sits down in the same place as before, scooting as close to the front edge of the seat as possible to keep the back of his calves from the heat of the metal.

His phone buzzes in his front pocket. He pulls it out and slides it open, squinting his eyes to conform to the screen in the sunlight. Mariana’s name claims the message that reads: _“Tell Connor I said good luck! ;)”_

He smiles, typing a reply of thanks and filling his older sister in on the heat and excitement of the day.

Jude sees Adam finally appear through the continuously condensing crowd. He watches Adam make his way back to him as Connor’s team starts the final warm up on the field. Adam sits down and holds a condensation-coated water bottle out to Jude. “I don’t know if you brought some for yourself, but today is no day to go without water.”

Cool water drips onto Jude’s lap as he graciously accepts the bottle, trying not to think about the new meaning of it that Connor has given him. “Thank you, and hey, be glad we aren’t them.” Jude tilts his head towards the diamond, twisting the cap off the bottle and taking too large of a swig for so soon in the day.

“Very true, I remember my baseball playing days.” Adam angles his head to look at Jude. “They never ended. As soon as the season finished, you had training, conditioning and tryouts, and then you do it all over again.” He looks back out at Connor on the field, a look of remorse striking his face. “I made damn sure that Connor was happy doing this before signing him up for travel ball. I would hate for him to think he has to play for me. Especially with that everything has happened, you know, with you and him.”

Jude looks over at Adam, the corner of his mouth turning up in blissful shock. He still finds himself amazed at how much Adam’s attitude towards he and Connor has changed, even after all these years.

“If it’s any consolation, he really does love playing.” Jude runs a finger down the rigid water bottle, creating a temporary line where condensation once was. He snickers, “Sometimes it’s all he ever talks about.”

The older man laughs, “I believe it. I can tell you that he loves that you come to all his games. I’m sure he makes that obvious to you.” He shrugs a shoulder Jude’s way.

At this point, Jude’s mouth has broken out of subtle smirks, and into a full grin. “He does. But it’s nice to know that I’m not the only person he tells.”

Jude looks towards his boyfriend now inaudibly counting off the team’s stretching. His eyes scan the way Connor’s uniform contours to his body, how tight the fabric looks hugged around Connor’s arm muscles.

His sunglasses can’t even hide how much he has been ogling his boyfriend. The new crimson patch on his face is distinctive from the rest of his face, despite the fact that the heat of the June mid-morning had already partially reddened his face. It’s very clear that Connor loves having Jude at all of his games _almost_ as much as Jude loves watching them.

The announcer finally signals the gathering of the opposing teams. Connor’s teammates disperse throughout the field, readying themselves in the outfield. Connor runs to third plate and digs his cleat into the loose dirt surrounding the base.

The first away team batter steps up and Justin prepares for the opening pitch with an overly rehearsed wind-up on the mound.

* * *

 

Jude impatiently watches the animated team frantically hug and congratulate each other after the final game. Following the exuberant exchange Connor shared with his fellow teammates, he rushes off the field to greet an overly zealous Jude.

Jude meets Connor halfway and throws himself around him, blatantly ignoring the patches of grass and dirt speckling his uniform.

“Holy shit, Connor, you’re advancing to the championship game!” Jude breaks from the hug and grabs each of his boyfriend’s biceps, shaking him excitedly. “Do you not understand how great this is? Especially since you made three of the day’s runs and a ton of RBIs!”

Connor grins, nodding proudly. Half proud of Jude’s use of proper baseball terminology, and half proud of himself for his admittedly excellent game play today.

“I am extremely aware of that fact, actually.” He takes his hat off and shakes his hair out, running a hand through it to help revive its original volume. “No thanks to you, though!” Connor pokes Jude in the side playfully. “Come on babe, I heard my _dad_ scream louder than you.”

“You say that like my screaming isn’t loud.” Adam approaches the pair, gripping his hand on his son’s shoulder. “I’ll keep that in mind when you hit a _championship_ winning home run next week. I’ll remember _not_ to let everyone in the crowd know that you’re my son.”

He takes Connor’s hat from him and releases his grip when the hat is hovering over his son’s head. “Good job today, Connor.”

Connor pats his hat back down on his head as Adam holds out an unopened water bottle to him. “You need to drink more water, I know you must be thirsty. Oh, and don’t mix any of that orange stuff in this one like you did earlier.”

Jude’s heart stops at the realization that Adam saw what had happened previously, his eyes widening as he wonders what the hell Connor’s dad had thought in that moment. _How much he now knew._

“Too bad, I really like making them.” Connor fights back a chuckle, slightly arching an eyebrow at him. A large smirk grows across his boyfriend’s face, hazel eyes piercing into brown.

Adam also raises an eyebrow awkwardly at the scene unfolding in front of him. “Well Connor, I’m going to-”

The stampede of sweaty players make their in between the trio, bringing the happiness previously seen on the field back to Connor. Connor’s teammates boisterously swarm around their captain, taking turns invading his privacy.

“Dude, Stevens! Man, you gotta come celebrate with us at Buffalo Wild Wings! We’re all coming, so why wouldn’t our captain? Even if I did outplay you today.” Justin lightly elbows Connor’s rib cage.

“Keep telling yourself that.” Connor remarks, turning his attention to his dad. “Uh, dad, can we go?”

“Well, I actually have to get ba-”

Jude cuts Adam off before he can say no. “He can go with me. I kind of told moms I’d be out late so it’s fine.” He and Connor throw his boyfriend’s dad innocent smiles, practically willing him to say yes.

“Alright, that sounds fine.” He turns away from Jude to Connor, gesturing towards him with the pointed end of his car key. “Don’t you dare come home past midnight!”

“Hey! Don’t look at me!” Connor holds his hands up in protest. “I’m not the one driving!” He raises his voice over the thunder of excitement from the boys around him, but his dad is already making his way to the parking lot.

* * *

 

The entire team is already seated when Jude and Connor walk into Buffalo Wild Wings, their hands locked together. At the sight of Connor, the guys lead another round of applause for their efforts today, as if the infinite amount of times they’d already celebrated wasn’t enough.

“Alright guys, today’s games were just the ones leading up to the championship.” Connor leads he and Jude to two open seats inside the sea of boys. “Remember, we aren’t state champions.”

“ _Yet_.” Jude adds, having already decided that his boyfriend’s team will take home the title during next Saturday’s game.

Zander speaks over the table’s commotion, excitedly pointing his index finger towards the brunette boy now nestled into his chair. “See, now, Jude’s got the right idea.”

“We will one hundred percent be state champions next week!” Garrett says, leaning into the middle of the table.

Allie, another teammate’s girlfriend, pitches her opinion. “If that’s the case, then why are we eating wings now? Why couldn’t we have waited until you guys won?”

“Whoa, Allie.” Her neck is playfully captured inside the crook of Harry's arm. “How can you be my girlfriend, but complain about a valid excuse to eat cheese fries and wings?”

She sinks into the embrace, an amused smile clad on her face. “You're right, the food is pretty great, but you're even better.”

“Oh my god, seriously? First Connor and Jude, and now you guys? Please, spare me my single ass.” Zander dramatically gags as he leans back into his chair, his eyerolls getting worse by the second.

Connor takes this opportunity to throw an arm around his boyfriend’s neck, bringing Jude close enough to inhale his lightly laced on cologne. How Jude still manages to smell like his cologne after a day outside is a mystery to everyone.

The couple’s fingers interlace as Jude blends his right hand into the hand Connor has slung around him.

Jude gets close enough to Connor to see the light freckles dotted along the bridge of his nose. “I have a plan for our date later.” He whispers so quietly that Connor can barely hear; the softness of Jude’s voice in his ear conjures goosebumps along the base of his neck.

“Do tell me more.” Connor lightly wets his lips, letting his boyfriend’s words take him away.

Jude nudges his left leg against Connor’s right. “More about what?”

His hand opens out onto a space directly above his boyfriend’s knee. He slowly slides his hand upwards until he reaches a space too large to grip comfortably, his hand hugging Connor’s upper thigh as much as it can.

His thumb begins to brush against his boyfriend's uniform threads as the food is delivered, effectively stealing their attention from each other for the rest of the meal.

* * *

 

Jude leans his body against the driver’s side of his run-down Jetta. His moms were reluctant to let him get a car, but they found it impossible to deny their youngest son a car, especially considering that he had offered to pay for the entire thing with the money he spent all last summer collecting. Jude being the only kid still in the house, excluding the occasional foster kid, also led to Stef and Lena’s eventual approval.

He arches his back off the metal, settling into a more comfortable position outside the restaurant.

The bell on the restaurant door jingles, tearing Jude’s gaze from a dried up piece of bubble gum on the crumbled pavement. Connor walks out with Justin, a faint roar of camaraderie consumes the air around them.

“Alright, Jude’s waiting for me. See you bright and early at practice Monday morning!” Connor calls out behind him, now making his way over to Jude. “Sorry I kept you waiting, you know how the guys are.” He throws a careless hand in the direction of the building.

“Yes, and I know that you are one of them, so don’t act all innocent, Mr. Stevens.” Jude unlocks the doors for the both of them and steps inside the car, quickly igniting the engine to blast the air conditioning. Even summer nights in San Diego are hot enough to prompt heat strokes.

“Oh! Mr. Stevens? That’s oddly formal for the parking lot of a sports bar.” Connor closes the door after wedging himself in the passenger seat. He slumps ahead and adjusts the vents so the A/C is directly blasting on him. “Good god, this is the first time today that I haven't been the slightest bit hot.”

“You’ll always be hot, _Mr. Stevens_.” Jude slyly smirks, his attention remaining fixed on backing his car out of the parking space.

“Look at you, Mr. Adams Foster, stealing my lines.” Connor teases.

Jude approaches the main road, leaning forward to look at the road past Connor’s slouched body, turning his head left and right to find a clearing in traffic. “Oh, so only you can compliment your boyfriend? How’s that fair?”

“Trust me, you are _more_ than welcome to compliment me.”

“Hmm...I tried it and it just doesn’t feel right, you know? I think I’d rather insult you instead.”

Connor snorts, turning to face Jude. An eyebrow hikes up his forehead, wordlessly encouraging his boyfriend to attempt an insult.

“For instance, I wish you weren’t wearing your gross uniform. Like, who the fuck participates in a day long baseball tournament in the scorching sun and _doesn’t_ bring a change of clothes?” Jude swallows away the jocular tone laced in his throat.

“Okay, A for effort on that insult because I _did_ , in fact, bring a change of clothes.” Connor smacks the equipment bag at his feet, adding a shrug to his next words. “I just like making you blush by keeping the uniform on.”

“Whoa! Some big talk from the passenger seat tonight! Please, do tell me how _attractive_ a sweaty uniform covered in grass stains and dirt is to my retinas.” Jude combs a hand through his dark hair.

“Almost as attractive as you in your sunglasses earlier.” Connor casually slumps back in his seat, clearly unaware of how deeply his words are taken.

Jude’s grip on the steering wheel suddenly tightens. His nails dig into the soft rubber, puncturing the wheel like his boyfriend’s sickeningly sappy comment has punctured his heart.

He attempts to hide his flattery with a forced snort, trying to be as casual as before. “I’ll be sure to tell my sunglasses the next time I see them. Unfortunately for you, I won’t be needing them for the rest of our date tonight.”

“Well, it _is_ dark out. Speaking of our date, can’t you just tell me where we’re going?” Connor voice plunges into whiny depths.

“It’s a place you usually love but probably won’t today. To be honest, I didn’t have much time to plan this out. I just thought this place would be private enough.”

Connor chuckles, a flirtatious undertone coating his voice. “Private enough for what?”

“I’ll leave that to your imagination.” Jude smirks to himself, turning off the highway down a road Connor immediately links to his years of baseball experience. A road Jude knows from his past few years as a spectator.

“Oh my god, we’re going back to the field?” His boyfriend’s voice sounds surprisingly excited about Jude’s last minute date location.

Jude lightly slams the steering wheel with a laugh. “Damn, how’d you guess?”

Connor laughs too, pointing at the park’s sign in the darkness. “Well, you’re kind of pulling into the parking lot right now.”

“You got me there.” Jude turns the steering wheel, driving across the white lines etched on the fresh tar. He chooses the parking space most convenient for the two of them, considering the parking lot is completely vacant.

The car lulls to a stop. Jude removes his keys from the ignition, spinning the key ring around his index finger. Connor turns to face Jude. Jude tilts his head to Connor silently, staring deeply into his boyfriend’s hazel eyes. Smiles paint across their faces.

The darker haired boy inches his face towards Connor’s. His upper body weight relies on his right arm, which sinks deeper into the leather arm rest of the driver’s seat.

Connor angles his head, slightly gaping his mouth open. A swift movement forward from him diminishes the space between their faces to almost nothing. Connor’s quickening breath mixes in with the calm breath of his boyfriend’s.

Jude licks his lips as Connor leans in to try and steal a kiss.

“Last one to the dugout loses!” Jude interrupts, quickly unbuckling and slinging his door open. He bolts onto the lawn following the forceful slam of his door.

“Damn it, Jude!” He hears Connor yell from the distance in between his own laughs. Jude races to the dugout, hot air blowing into his clothes as he tries his best to get there first.

Connor’s speed excels once he shakes off his initial whirlwind of hormones. Upon throwing the passenger door closed, his adrenaline increases. The back of his boyfriend’s head comes closer into view as he runs towards him. With one final stride, he grabs Jude around the waist with both hands, forcing him to a halt.

They collapse into each other in a fit of laughter and heavy breathing.

“Got you.” Connor sighs with smirk, his hands tugging at Jude’s shirt as it hangs over his waist. He smiles, pressing his lips quickly against his boyfriend’s. “You thought you could run away from me without a kiss?”

The teasingly short peck leaves a distraught look on Jude’s face, filling Connor up with undeniable pride.

“You want to play dirty? Fine, I’ll play dirty. If I can strike you out, I win. If I can’t, you win.” Jude stares straight into his boyfriend’s eyes, challenging Connor at his own game.

Connor laughs, completely turned on by Jude’s sudden aggression. “Hmm...and what is it I’ll be winning?”

Jude scoffs, walking past Connor to get what they need from the dugout. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” He smacks a supporting stake of the covered shelter adjacent to the field. “Besides, I _technically_ just got to the dugout first. So, I win.”

He flips a switch that activates the lights surrounding the field, his front teeth gleam in the fluorescent haze now dousing the field.

“Should’ve thought of that before agreeing to ‘strike me out.’” Connor surrounds his words in air quotes, walking over to home base and brushing dirt off of it with the shuffle of his left foot.

Upon grabbing a mitt, ball, and bat from the bin near the bench, Jude slings the bat under his right arm. He slips the glove onto his left hand, storing the ball inside for easy travel.

He greets Connor back on the field. “Justin revealed your weakness earlier.” Jude forcefully places the bat into his boyfriend’s hands, his mouth coiling into a smirk. “You can’t touch screwballs.”

The sandy blonde boy raises an eyebrow back at his boyfriend. “Jude, _please_ , Justin has been pitching screwballs for _six_ years. And I’ve been batting since I was five years old.”

“All the more reason why I know you’ll win.” Jude mounts himself on the pitcher’s mound and takes three big steps closer to Connor. He offers his boyfriend a quaint smile in the midst of the teasing. “But I’m still going to try to win.”

Connor tightens his grip on the bat, each finger slowly wrapping around the threads of the bat’s handle. He takes his time finding the proper position to bat. When content, he slightly bends his knees, squatting into his batting stance.

The ball Jude has is brought towards his chest in the mitt as he prepares for the first pitch.

He attempts to pitch like he’s watched Justin do countless times, beginning by moving his left foot slightly to its respectable side. He makes up for the imbalance by quickly catching himself with the backwards stomp of his right foot. His left foot then swings across his torso and plants itself in front of his body. Jude’s pitching arm follows through with the motion, successfully propelling the ball towards Connor.

Shock joins Connor’s range of emotions as the ball enters the strike zone, flies past his bat, and collides with the chain link fence behind home plate. If he wasn’t already planning on purposely missing his boyfriend’s first pitch, Connor would be disappointed in himself for actually getting a strike.

“Oh! Strike one! Who’s been playing baseball their whole life now?” Jude opens his arms out in bragging celebration, also shocked by his ability to genuinely strike Connor out.

“Still not you!” Connor laughs, hustling to fetch the ball behind him. “I’m super impressed by that throw, but let’s see how you do when I play for real.” He picks the ball up and throws it back to his boyfriend.

The baseball gracefully lands in Jude’s mitt as he simultaneously clamps his hand around it. “Oh, because you _totally_ weren’t playing seriously earlier with that eccentric batting stance.”

“I wasn’t paying attention!” Connor bluffs, cloning the outlandish stance that his boyfriend had just made fun of. He prepares himself for the second pitch, allowing himself to try a little harder now that he’s aware of Jude’s hidden baseball talent.

Jude lifts the glove to his chest again. “A little over confident, hmm?”

He stands with his feet shoulder width apart as previously observed, repeating the same footwork as before. The ball launches forward with the same capacity as his first pitch.

The second pitch mimics the first one is every way...at least for Jude. This time, Connor is more than ready, putting every bit of strength remaining from the day into his swing. The ball ricochets off his bat, growing increasingly less visible as it leaves the lines of light emitting from the field’s lamps.

Connor watches Jude’s head move with the ball as he follows its path through the night sky. He offers his boyfriend an arrogant smile when they are facing each other once again. “I win.”

Jude scoffs, walking back towards his boyfriend. He taps Connor’s nose with a clammy finger, a nod to Connor’s actions before the first game this morning. “You just got lucky.”

This summons laughter from Connor. His head tilts backwards, hazel eyes locking with the sky above the pair. “Jude, you can say I’m lucky in some ways, especially when it comes to you.” His gaze comes back down to earth, lingering with Jude’s. “But, you know for a fact that me winning this wasn’t luck, I’m just _that_ good.”

“Well, let’s hope you’re _that_ good next week.” Jude murmurs genuinely, throwing his mitt off to meet the metal bat also laying in the dirt.

“So, speaking of me winning.” Connor swings his arm through the air, his left hand catching Jude’s right. “What’s my prize?”

Their hands ungracefully mesh together as they find the proper position for their interlocked fingers, an inaccurate depiction of their relationship.

Looks are thrown between the boys. Jude may not be a master at playing baseball, but he’s the absolute best at playing with Connor’s emotions. In this moment, Connor swears that Jude’s eyes are brighter than the blinding field lamps now showcasing the mad love that they share for each other.

Jude’s mouth curls up at the side in a familiar manner. “Hmm, your prize is…” He proceeds to walk off the field, dragging his boyfriend along with him by the tug of his captured hand. “Quality time with your wonderful boyfriend.”

The sandy blonde boy is pulled from a trance neither of them knew he was in. Connor regains his footing to voluntarily follow Jude. “So, basically you’re saying we both win?” He asks half seriously.

“I guess you can say that. Even after _all_ that effort you put into beating a novice at the sport you’ve spent a lifetime mastering.”

Connor snorts in response as Jude stops the pair at a place on the lawn behind the fence surrounding the diamond. They are far enough from the field so that its lights don’t completely block out the stars in the sky, but close enough to just barely register each other’s silhouettes in the moonlight.

Still tightly gripping on Connor’s hand, Jude elegantly throws himself on the canopy of clipped grass below them. As a result, the heavier boy is yanked to the ground. Connor is forced to break his fall, and prevent it from breaking Jude.

He catches himself, his chest mere inches from his boyfriend’s. Jude can scarcely make out Connor’s physique looming over him.

Laughter breaks through the air as Connor releases the tension on his arms, allowing his head to rest against his boyfriend’s chest. Connor contours his body so that only his left side makes contact with the grass. His exposed hand swings across Jude, whose back rests flush against the ground.

Jude bends his left knee. As a result, his respective foot slides against the blades of grass, bringing his left foot closer to the rest of his body. The timing is perfect as Connor’s right leg inserts itself into the void Jude created with his movement.

Warmth radiates from Jude, shrouding Connor in love and protection. The heartbeat in Jude’s chest pulses rhythmically with the constant rise and fall of his chest, a byproduct of inhaling and exhaling the summer air.

Jude places his free hand over Connor’s hand, which is resting on his stomach. Jude’s index finger gently strokes Connor’s knuckles. “Want to know how much I love you?”

“Hm?” Connor casually questions under his breath, obviously having heard such words from his boyfriend before.

“Enough to actually enjoy having a sweaty seventeen year old boy on top of me in the San Diego heat.”

The heavier boy quietly soaks in each word. He resettles the leg he had knitted into Jude’s, causing his calf to rub against his boyfriend’s shin.

“And do you want to know how much _I_ love you?” Connor tilts his head up towards Jude’s dark figure, his black profile nicely contrasts with the ever deepening blue shade of the night sky.

The gaze Jude had on the star speckled blanket above them is pulled away and lands next to him, onto his boyfriend. “How much?”

“I love you enough to actually prefer being out in the heat with you instead of in my bed after a cold shower, despite how exhausted I am right now.”

Jude can only really see the outline of Connor’s head, but he knows that Connor’s face is definitely fixated on his as well. Jude also knows that if it were daytime, their eyes would be doing all the talking. But now, on this dark June evening, their contact and dialogue are the gestures leaving the chilling marks of their love.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> My tumblr--kissinguponwalls


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